Wednesday, July 9, 2014. Chaos and violence continue, Americans don't
feel the Iraq War was a war "worth fighting," Nouri al-Maliki tries to
censor the press, Joe Biden talks to the Kurds, and much more.

71 percent of Americans said that the conflict in Iraq was not worth
fighting, and 49 percent said that Washington does not have a
responsibility to help the Iraqi government fight off insurgent groups.

49% is a very high number when you consider that they are opposing US
President Barack Obama's so-called 'plan' for Iraq. It's not even been a
month since Barack drew vague outlines in a June 19th speech. Yet 49%
are already opposed to it.

And for good reason, it's not a plan and it backs Nouri al-Maliki -- the
man whose destroyed Iraq over two terms and wants a third one.

ISIS is only one small part of a larger Sunni revolt in Iraq that
sectarian groups have been preparing for years, according to Iraq’s
exiled Vice President Tariq al-Hashimi. And defeating ISIS won’t stop
the greater battle.“We shouldn’t look at this development of ISIS as apart from the
uprising of the Arab Sunni provinces over two years,” Hashimi told The
Daily Beast in an interview from Turkey, where he has been living since
the government of Nouri al-Maliki purged him in 2012 by indicting him on
murder charges, then convicting him in abstentia.“The provinces have done a peaceful Sunni revolt against the
oppression, the injustice, the inhuman conditions the Arab Sunnis have
been suffering for years,” he said.

The issue of 'advisors' came up in today's US State Dept press briefing moderated by spokesperson Jen Psaki:

QUESTION: Okay. And let me just follow up on the advisors on
the ground. Their first assessment last week was that the Iraqis may be
able to defend Baghdad but are unable to sort of retake territory
already conquered by the Islamic State. Has there been any update to the
situation? Are they doing anything other than assessment and perhaps
talking to --MS. PSAKI: Well, assessing is certainly a part of --QUESTION: Right.MS. PSAKI: -- what their mandate is. But I would refer you to DOD for any updates on their work on the ground.QUESTION: Okay. But the fact that al-Baghdadi so boldly goes
to a mosque that is a well-known mosque in Mosul and within – knowing
exactly where he is, his location was well known and so on, is the
United States or would the United States be willing to engage militarily
to ensure that, like they did back in 2004 and ’05 and ’06 when they
targeted Zawahiri, that they would actually target al-Baghdadi?

MS. PSAKI: You’re familiar with the options that we always
have and the President always has at his disposal, but as has
consistently been the case, our focus is on the political process and
encouraging that to move forward. And again, we have 300 advisors on the
ground. They’re in the process of assessing, but I would refer you to
DOD for any more specifics on their work.

Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said Wednesday the Sunni fundamentalist
group the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) poses a threat not
just to the government in Baghdad, but to the United States as well."This
country should not make any mistake on this, nor anyone in Congress —
this is a threat to our country," Hagel said while meeting with troops
at Naval Submarine Base Kings Bay in Georgia."This is a force
that is sophisticated. It's dynamic, it's strong, it's organized, it's
well-financed, it's competent, [ISIS]. And it is a threat to our allies
all over the Middle East. It's a threat to Europe. It's a threat to
every stabilized country on Earth, and it's a threat to us," Hagel said.

Ramzy Baroud (Antiwar.com) offers this take:Not only is Obama failing to accept even a level of moral responsibility
over the current plight of Iraqis, but he is haggling
to achieve some political gains from Iraq’s misery. Hundreds of US troops
have been ordered back to Iraq to "assess" the fighting capabilities
of the Iraqi army, and a cautious attempt at intervention is building up slowly
in Washington. Interventionism is once more permeating American foreign policy
thinking; this time around, however, it is ‘soft’ intervention, although
it is laden with the same kind of language and misleading references.
It seems that the American government has learned so very little since
the last botched effort, championed by Perle’s neocons at remaking the
Middle East to its liking.

Nouri is the problem in Iraq and he cannot bring the country together.

He is inept and he is corrupt.

If you're not grasping it, right now, while Barack's insisting the
country needs a "political solution," Nouri's yet again attacking
political rivals. Rudaw reports:Hours after Iraq’s embattled Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki
accused the Kurds of harboring insurgents, the Kurdistan Region decided
that Kurdish ministers appointed to the Iraqi cabinet will not be going
to Baghdad.“As a first response to Maliki’s threats, the Kurdish
leadership has decided that our ministers will not attend any meetings
of the Iraqi cabinet,” said an official from the dominant Kurdistan
Democratic Party (KDP). The official said that there is a consensus among all Kurdish
political parties, including the Patriotic Union of Kurdistan (PUK), to
boycott Baghdad.

Nouri is begging the US for help and US President Barack Obama has
provided him with weapons and now with US troops. And Nouri says "thank
you" by attacking the Kurds?

If you're not getting how offensive Nouri's remarks are, how destructive
they are, note the lukewarm reception they received in today's US State
Dept press briefing moderated by Jen Psaki.

QUESTION: Yes. Prime Minister Maliki in a TV address today, he
accused the Kurdistan Regional Government of allowing Erbil to become a
base for the ISIS and the al-Qaida and terrorists. And he also kind of
confirmed that he will not allow them to take over disputed areas like
Kirkuk. Do you have any reaction to this kind of a --MS. PSAKI: Well, without seeing the full context of his
comments, let me just reiterate that our view is that the focus in Iraq
right now should be on taking steps to urgently move forward with
government formation. There have been – there’s a long history here of a
lack of inclusivity, and at this pivotal point in time, it’s important
for all leaders, including Prime Minister Maliki, to act in a way that
welcomes in and unites leaders in the country instead of dividing.QUESTION: Are you concerned that Erbil might become a hotbed for extremists?MS. PSAKI: Erbil?QUESTION: Yes.

MS. PSAKI: I think we’re concerned about any threat that ISIL poses to citizens and communities in Iraq.

For those unfamiliar with the State Dept press briefings, Jen Psaki not
rushing to defend Nouri and his comments is a major shift.

Iraq is a powder keg and Nouri's lighting matches.

The Tehran Times notes, "Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said Wednesday the
Kurdish-controlled city of Arbil was becoming an operations base for the
Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) militant group that seized
swath of northern and western Iraq last month." AP observes, "Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's allegations are likely to worsen Baghdad's already thorny relationship with the Kurds." Al Arabiya News quotes
Nouri declaring, "They (militant groups) will lose and so will their
hosts, because they failed to provide an example of patriotic
partnership." AFP points out, "The incumbent on Wednesday appeared to damage his efforts to retain his
post by turning on Kurdish leaders whose support he needs, accusing them
of hosting militant groups behind the onslaught."

Back to today's State Dept press briefing:

QUESTION: How realistic to – is it to assume that if Prime
Minister Maliki started acting in a more inclusive way and if the Sunnis
and Kurds bought into this inclusive policy of governance, that this
would neutralize the threat from the Islamic State group. How realistic
is this?MS. PSAKI: Well, Roz, I think I’m not going to speculate on
that. I think there’s no question in anyone’s mind that a unified Iraq
and one that – where the leaders are moving forward toward a government
formation would strengthen Iraq and strengthen the case and the fight
against ISIL and the threat it poses.Do we have more on --QUESTION: But does that mean – I mean, it just seems as if the
Administration has been creating this impression that if the political
climate will change, then magically this threat from the Islamic State
group will just --MS. PSAKI: I don’t think --QUESTION: -- will just be eradicated. And it seems as if, given --MS. PSAKI: That’s not at all – let me stop you there. That’s
not at all the impression we’re sending or we’re intending to send, or I
don’t think anyone thinks we’re sending. We’re – our focus here is on
the reality on the ground, which is that this is – there’s a grave
security situation on the ground. There’s a threat that’s being posed to
all Iraqi people, as well as to leaders in the region, and right now
the focus should not be on political disagreements. It should be on
unifying against the threat that they all face. And so what we’re
talking about is how to strengthen the Iraqi leadership, Iraqi security
forces, in order to take on the threat they face. And I think there’s no
question that in order to work towards a long-term sustainable Iraq,
that that is an essential step toward that process.QUESTION: But given the widespread criticism of Maliki’s
leadership in the past eight years, it’s going to take time to build
trust among Sunnis and among Kurds. And so it just seems as if it’s
going to take a while to get that political structure right-sized. In
the meantime, Islamic State is going to be doing what it’s doing.

MS. PSAKI: Well, Roz, they’re meeting – let me disagree with
you. They’re meeting on Sunday, as you know, to move forward with the
political process. We’re encouraging them to do that rapidly. It’s up to
the Iraqi people to determine who their future leadership will be, but
there’s no question they have it in their capacity to move forward. And
once they’ve put a new parliament – speaker of the parliament, a new
president, a new prime minister in place, that will begin the path, or –
be an important step on the path towards unity and towards
strengthening their fight on the ground.

Nouri is a complete and utter failure. So he attacks the Kurds to distract from his failures.

Insurgents in
Iraq have seized nuclear materials used for scientific research at a
university in the country's north, Iraq told the United Nations in a
letter appealing for help to "stave off the threat of their use by
terrorists in Iraq or abroad."Nearly 40 kilograms
(88 pounds) of uranium compounds were kept at Mosul University, Iraq's
U.N. Ambassador Mohamed Ali Alhakim told U.N. Secretary-General Ban
Ki-moon in the July 8 letter obtained by Reuters on Wednesday.

Militants -- insurgents, resistance fighters, ISIS, al Qaeda in Mesopotamia, what have you -- now can make a dirty bomb?

The history of the dirty bomb has yet to be written, because fortunately
no one to date has ever deployed a conventional explosive laced with
radioactive material. However, a slew of worrisome incidents in several
countries involving loose or orphaned radioactive devices forms a
chilling chronology and a stark reminder that a dirty bomb could explode
tomorrow anywhere in the world. Terrorist groups are actively pursuing
unsecured radiological material, and several of them may already possess
dirty-bomb capabilities. In this timeline, review the past 15 years of
news-making incidents involving unprotected radioactive materials
worldwide, including many occurrences of accidental encounters that
prove just how easy it is to acquire these dangerous substances.

RT zooms in on this, "The stolen materials are not believed to be enriched uranium,
which would make it difficult for them to be made into weapons, a
government source told Reuters." Let's hope that's correct, that claim that can't be verified.

Regardless, this is a huge failure. And, with regards to weapons, it just gets worse. RT reports:

The Iraqi government has informed the United Nations that it has lost
control of a former chemical weapons depot to Islamist insurgents
affiliated with ISIS, or IS, and cannot carry out its obligations to
destroy what’s stored in the compound.In a letter penned by
Iraq’s UN Ambassador Mohamed Ali Alhakim, it was revealed that
“armed terrorist groups” took over the Muthanna complex
on June 11. Located north of Baghdad, the facility was the main
center for chemical weapons production prior to the 1991 Gulf
War, and is still home to 2,500 rockets containing the lethal
nerve agent sarin.

Edith M. Lederer (AP) notes, "U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki expressed concern on June 20
about the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant seizing the complex, but
played down the importance of the two bunkers with 'degraded chemical
remnants,' saying the material dates back to the 1980s and was stored
after being dismantled by U.N. inspectors in the 1990s." BBC News adds, "It is believed that some 2,500 rockets filled with nerve agents - including sarin and mustard gas - are stored at Muthanna."

How Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki plans to defeat the horribly
abusive Islamic State of Iraq and Sham (ISIS) and other Sunni groups
that have seized control of large swathes of Iraq remains unclear. And
under his government’s new media regulations, the Iraqi public isn’t
likely to find out.The new guidelines,
issued on June 18 by the state media commission to remain in effect
“during the war on terror,” in effect require local and international
media to cheer on the government. For example, the rules forbid media
from reporting information from insurgent forces and compel coverage of
government forces in only glowing terms.As one Iraqi journalist put it, the guidelines “basically ban
journalists from covering war activities, because whatever you report
about terrorists could be considered support for them.”

Asaib ahl-Haq militias supported by Iraqi PM Nouri al-Maliki have
created a checkpoint on Erbil–Baghdad Road that insults and tortures
Kurdish Taxi drivers.Kurdish taxi driver Abu Walid who works along Erbil-Baghdad Road told
BasNews that “due to Asaib Ahl-Haq threats, I have stayed here for a
month with no work. On the road, whoever is Kurdish will be captured and
tortured.”Walid stated that they are 510 taxi drivers working on Erbil-Baghdad
Road but only 17-20 drivers have shown their readiness to work lately
faced with the danger.

While Nouri went after the Kurds, US Vice President Joe Biden spoke today with KRG President Massoud Barzani:

The White House

Office of the Vice President

For Immediate Release

July 09, 2014

Readout of Vice President Biden's Conversation with President of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region Masoud Barzani

This morning, Vice President Biden spoke with Masoud Barzani,
President of the Iraqi Kurdistan Region. The Vice President underscored
the United States’ support for Iraq in its fight against the Islamic
State of Iraq and the Levant. The Vice President expressed his
condolences for all Iraqis who have lost their lives defending their
land against ISIL including members of the Kurdish Peshmerga. Vice
President Biden and President Barzani also agreed on the need to
accelerate the government formation process pursuant to the time-lines
set forth in the Iraqi constitution.

As chaos in Iraq continues, hostages have been taken. Saturday, Alsumaria reported over 40 boarded a plane to India. Belfast Telegraph added, "The 46 nurses had been holed up for more than a week in Tikrit, where fighters of the Islamic State group have taken over." Indian Express notes,
"Nearly 600 more Indian nationals will return home from the
conflict-hit
Iraq over the next two days, the Ministry of External Affairs said on
Saturday. It said 200 of them will return by an Iraqi Airways special
chartered flight from Najaf to Delhi late Saturday night itself." The Times of India spoke with 25-year-old nurse P Lesima Jerose Monisha who went to work in Iraq in hopes of paying off her student loans:

Though
the insurgents assured them they would not be harmed, there was always a
fear that a bomb would land on the hospital, she said.She
said the scariest moment was when the militants gave them just two hours
to get ready and leave the hospital on July 2. "Indian embassy
officials told us over phone to follow the gunmen's instructions for our
own safety." Monisha said they were taken in a bus to Mosul where they
were detained in a jail-like building. Finally on Friday they were
onceagain told to pack up their belongings and board a bus. "Only then
we
realized we are being released. The insurgents released us on the
outskirts of Mosul from where Indian embassy officials took care of us,"
she said.

While the nurses have returned to their homes, not all hostages have been as fortunate. Sevil Erkus (Hurriyet Daily News) reports, "Some 49 Turkish consulate staff members in Iraq are entering their
second month in captivity with uncertainty surrounding their fate
despite the release of Turkish truck drivers last week." Today's Zaman notes that Tuesday was day 27 of the hostage crisis and that, "The Turkish government imposed a gag order on reports of the ISIL
hostage crisis, immediately after the hostage-taking at the Mosul
Consulate General. Critics see this as a way to prevent criticism of the
Justice and Development Party (AK Party) government's handling of
foreign policy, while Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan accuses the
opposition parties and the media of trying to provoke the government to
say negative things about ISIL and of putting the lives of hostages in
danger."

The Turkish hostages were noted in today's US State Dept press briefing:

QUESTION: It has been about a month now there are 49 Turkish
consulate staff and diplomats still being held hostage by the ISIS. Do
you have any update on any of those?MS. PSAKI: I do not have an update. We remain in regular touch
through our team on the ground with Turkish officials, and of course,
we remain concerned about those who are being held, as we do about
Americans who have been held, as we do about any international citizens
who are being held by ISIL.QUESTION: Have Turkish officials asked you any kind of help to --MS. PSAKI: I don’t have any update to offer for you on this case.QUESTION: Last time you said that a door is – door remains open if there is any need by Ankara. The door is still open?

On Eve of HVAC Testimony, Texas Family Urges Lawmakers to Combat Veteran Suicide

CONTACT: Gretchen Andersen (212) 982-9699 or press@iava.orgWashington DC (July 9, 2014)
– Today, Susan and Richard Selke – parents of Marine veteran Clay Hunt
who died by suicide in 2011 – met with Senate Veterans Affairs Committee
(SVAC) Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Senator John Walsh (D-MT) on
Capitol Hill about combating veteran suicide and addressing access to
mental health care. The Selkes met with the Senators ahead of their
testimony tomorrow morning at a hearing on access to mental health care.
IAVA CEO and Founder Paul Rieckhoff and Legislative Director Alex
Nicholson were also present at the meetings. During
IAVA’s 10th annual Storm the Hill in late March, Sen. John Walsh
introduced the Suicide Prevention For America’s Veterans Act (SAV Act),
S.B. 2182. Tomorrow, House Veterans Affairs Committee (HVAC) Chairman
Jeff Miller (R-FL) will introduce the Clay Hunt Suicide Prevention For
American Veterans Act (Clay Hunt SAV), named after the Selke’s son, at a
2:30 p.m. press conference at the House Triangle. “Had
this bill been passed a few years ago, I do believe we would still have
Clay today,” said Susan Selke, mother of Clay Hunt. “Our country is
losing 22 veterans to suicide a day – about 600 veterans a month. It is
so difficult for one to grasp that number. These losses don’t take into
account the impact of family members and loved ones and how their lives
are changed. We thank Chairman Sanders and Sen. Walsh for hearing our
story and for pressing their colleagues to address veteran suicide.” Combating
veteran suicide and improving access to mental health care has been
IAVA’s top priority for 2014. According to IAVA’s 2014 Member Survey,
40% of respondents said they know at least one Iraq or Afghanistan
veteran that has died by suicide. “Susan
and Richard have shown so much strength as they continue to advocate on
behalf of veterans,” said IAVA CEO and Founder Paul Rieckhoff. “We
thank Chairman Sanders and Sen. Walsh for meeting with us today and
continuing to support our community. The Selkes are here because they
personally know this is an urgent fight. The first step in reversing the
suicide trend among veterans is to pass the Clay Hunt SAV Act. We want
members of Congress to know this is an important, nonpartisan issue that
will change the life path for thousands of veterans and their
families.”The
Campaign to Combat Suicide was designed to raise public awareness of
the suicide crisis, demand Congressional action and a Presidential
Executive Order to start to reverse the suicide trend.As part of its Campaign to Combat Suicide,
all year long IAVA will activate every element of its membership,
programs and partners – both on-the-ground and online. IAVA will
incorporate this effort into everything we do from our monthly
VetTogethers to our over 500,000-person strong social media community.
We will empower our almost 300,000 members and supporters to serve as a
ground force for outreach, support and advocacy. And we will travel the
country, turning public attention to the issue of veteran suicide and
promoting solutions.IAVA
connects veterans to mental health services, including partnering with
the VA’s Veterans Crisis Line to ensure that every servicemember,
veteran, family member and provider knows that there is free and
confidential help available 24 hours a day through phone, text and
online. Veterans, or those concerned about veterans, can call
800-273-8255 and press 1 to be directly connected to qualified
responders.Note to media: Please contact press@IAVA.org to schedule an interview with IAVA leadership or Susan and Richard Selke. Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America (www.IAVA.org)
is the nation's first and largest nonpartisan, nonprofit organization
representing veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan and has more than 270,000
Member Veterans and civilian supporters nationwide. Celebrating its 10th
year anniversary, IAVA recently received the highest rating -
four-stars - from Charity Navigator, America's largest charity
evaluator.

Sloan Gibson is the acting Secretary of the VA. Still on veterans,
Senator Patty Murray is the Chair of the Senate Budget Committee and
serves on the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee. Her office issued the
following yesterday:

WASHINGTON,
D.C. – Today, Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), senior member of the
Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, delivered remarks on the Senate floor
regarding reform at
the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (VA), the VA Secretary nominee, and
the ongoing conference committee.

Full remarks as prepared:

“M.
President, I believe that when it comes to caring for our nation’s
heroes, we cannot accept anything less than excellence. Like many of my
colleagues I have been
very troubled by the most recent allegations of VA failing to provide
veterans with timely health care. VA generally offers very high quality
health care and does many things as well as -- or better than -- the
private sector. But when you are caring for the
nation’s heroes, and you have the backing of the full resources of the
Federal government, ‘just as good’ is not enough –
we expect more.

“So
I am very frustrated to be here again talking about these deeply
disturbing issues, and the Department’s repeated failures to change. GAO
and the Inspector General
have reported on these problems many times over the years. And last
Congress we did a great deal of work around wait times, particularly for
mental health care. I think VA is starting to see that business as
usual is not acceptable.

“The
Administration has taken steps to begin addressing some of the major,
system-wide problems -- but much more needs to be done. Tomorrow, when I
meet with the President’s
nominee for VA Secretary, I will ask him about how he plans to make
these changes. And that is why I am very glad to be serving on the
veterans conference committee – because Congress needs to act as well.

“The
most important thing we can do right now is to pass responsible and
effective legislation to bring much needed reforms to VA. And we need to
do it soon.

“There
have been major bipartisan efforts in both the House and the Senate to
move legislation addressing these problems. Many Members have been part
of those efforts
and I commend them all for their commitment to bipartisanship and for
putting the needs of our veterans first.

“Now
it is vital that we continue to build on this bipartisan momentum – and
continue making progress if we are going to address some of the
immediate accountability
and transparency concerns plaguing the VA, and to fix its deep-seated
structural and cultural challenges.

“I
know Members have a wide range of concerns with the bills. And I
believe we can address these concerns responsibly and in a way that puts
our veterans first and
gives the VA the tools they need to address the challenges they face.
That means building and strengthening the VA system so it delivers the
best care over the long term.

“But
it is important for us to act quickly to start making these changes.
We cannot allow this process to break down. Veterans are still waiting
to get the care they
need. Many of us were rightly outraged that VA did not act to help
veterans – because the Department ignored all the information and did
nothing.

“This
Congress must not do the same thing and fail veterans by not acting. I
urge all of my colleagues to work as hard and as quickly as possible to
finalize an agreement
and get it to the President.

“As
more problems will be uncovered, and the investigations will proceed,
and we will need even more action from VA, the Administration, and
Congress.

“Because
the nation made a promise to the men and women who answered the call of
duty—and one of the most important ways we uphold that is by making
sure our veterans
can access the health care they need and deserve – no matter what it
takes.”